Royals sign outfielder who once made obscene gesture to Detroit fans

The Royals added depth to their outfield corps on Wednesday with the signing of Tyler Collins to a minor-league contract.

As part of his deal with the Royals, Collins was invited to spring training, which starts next month in Surprise, Ariz.

Collins, who spent parts of four seasons with the Tigers, hit .235 with a .333 slugging percentage, 14 home runs and 58 RBIs in 183 games from 2014-17. Unfortunately for Collins, he may be best known for making an obscene gesture to fans at Comerica Park after he and teammate Justin Upton lost track of a flyball during a game against the A’s in April 2016.

“Nobody wants that ball to get lost less than me. That hurts,” Collins told the Detroit Free-Press after that game. “And to be at home and to hear boos after that play, it hit a trigger inside of me and I lashed out, completely inappropriately. I’m absolutely embarrassed that happened and I’m very sorry to everybody in Detroit. I just want you guys to understand that I love this team and I want to win so when we come home and get booed, it’s tough to swallow. But like I said, I apologize completely and I’m embarrassed at myself and I know my family is embarrassed at me and I’m sure these guys are, too, so I’m sorry that happened.”

Collins, 27, hit .193 with five home runs and 14 RBIs in 169 plate appearances last season with the Tigers. At Class AAA Toledo, he batted .288 in 296 plate appearances.

This story was originally published January 18, 2018 at 9:00 AM with the headline "Royals sign outfielder who once made obscene gesture to Detroit fans."